The organizers of the Taylor Swift concert - where a young fan tragically died after suffering a medical emergency - have broken their silence.
Before the 33-year-old singer took the stage in Brazil on Friday (November 17), a fan named Ana Clara Benevides passed away after fainting in the sweltering heat.
It was reported by the Brazilian newspaper Fohla De Sao Paolo that the 23-year-old concertgoer went into cardiac arrest and was transported to the Salgado Filho Municipal Hospital, where she then died of cardiorespiratory arrest - but no official cause of death has been disclosed as of this writing.
Benevides's tragic death came as fans battled the blistering heat and humidity throughout the duration of the show on Friday as Rio de Janeiro hit a record high of the heat index at 59.3C, per Reuters.
T4F (the concert organizers) have now issued a statement on Instagram about the untimely loss at the capital city's Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos stadium.
"It’s with great sadness that we inform you about the death of Ana Clara Benevides Machado aged 23," they wrote, as cited and translated by The Mirror.
"Yesterday night, Ana Clara felt unwell and was assisted by a team of emergency workers and paramedics, being taken to a medical center at Nilton Santos Olympic Stadium so the first aid protocol could be applied."
"Given the situation, the medical team opted to transfer her to Salgado Filho Hospital. After nearly an hour of emergency assistance, she regrettably died," they continued, adding, "We send our most sincere condolences to the family and friends of Ana Clara Benevides."
The statement did not go down well with fans as many took to the comment section to blast the company for allegedly banning people from bringing water bottles inside the open-air venue (however, this claim has not yet been confirmed).
"One person lost his LIFE because of the irresponsibility of the organization," one person commented. "What measures are you going to take from now on so that it doesn't happen again?"
Throughout the concert, Swift was seen pausing her segments to cater to desperate fans who were chanting for "water," to which the singer responded: "We don't need to chant, it's totally fine. We just need to get water to them. Does anyone here have water?"
At one point, during her performance of 'All Too Well (10 Minute Version)', the songstress was seen grabbing a bottle of water from employees, and giving it to fans who were in need.
Swift is believed to have been completely unaware of Ana's passing as she took to the stage, and has since issued a heartbreaking statement on Instagram expressing her devastation.
"I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this. I can’t believe that I’m writing these words, but it is with a shattered heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show," she penned.
"There’s very little information I have, other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young," she continued, before stating that she would not be talking about the death on stage that evening.
"I want to say now I feel this loss deeply and my broken heart goes out to her family and friends," the singer said, adding that this was the "last thing I thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil."
Swift was set to perform to fans that same day but postponed the event, explaining on Instagram: "I’m writing this from my dressing room in the stadium. The decision has been made to postpone tonight’s show due to the extreme temperatures in Rio."
"The safety and wellbeing of my fans, fellow performers, and crew always has to come first," she added.
The singer still has two more shows left in Rio de Janeiro and will then travel to Sao Paulo for three more shows.
